Guts

Chrysler’s Second Turnaround

In the early 1990s, Chrysler recovered from its second near-death experience and not only enjoyed record profits, but it was also named Forbes Magazine’s "Company of the Year." The man who was at the forefront of the car company’s historic renaissance was its product-development genius and iconoclastic leader, Robert A. Lutz, who was then Chrysler’s president and vice-chairman.

He credits the firm’s turnaround to its embrace (at his urging) of a deliberately schizophrenic corporate culture. He wanted tough financial controls coupled with a rock-the-boat, provocative, highly creative product development process. This strategy resulted in a large family of successful products, beginning with the radical and enormously popular Dodge Viper sports car.

On May 7, 1998, Chrysler and Germany’s Daimler Benz (owner of Mercedes) shocked the international business world when they announced the merger of their companies, the largest industrial merger to date. Chrysler had turned itself around to become the world’s most profitable car company, one that Daimler - the gold standard of European car makers - sought as a partner.